Most ESA statutes require data collection and public reporting, and many states publish annual report data beyond statutory requirements¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (2 entries) · qualitative r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2024 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? ESA statutes generally mandate some form of data collection and public reporting, though the data released varies significantly across states. → Berry 2024 q2 i? In states' annual or quarterly reports, published data frequently surpassed what state statutes required, covering achievement, student characteristics, and finances. → Berry 2024 (2)

Evidence¶

Berry 2024¶

Berry, W. & Chait, R. (2024). Education savings accounts and accountability: A landscape analysis across states. WestEd. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED663763

q2 · i? · review · r2

Analysis of the 15 statutes finds most mandate data collection and public reporting on aspects such as assessment results, graduation rates, expenditures, and services provided, with significant variation in what states release publicly.

"ESA statutes generally mandate some form of data collection and public reporting to monitor ESA funds."

Berry 2024 (2)¶

Berry, W. & Chait, R. (2024). Education savings accounts and accountability: A landscape analysis across states. WestEd. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED663763

q2 · i? · qualitative · r2

WestEd reviewed annual reports from Arizona, Florida, Indiana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Tennessee (ESA Pilot), and West Virginia, finding reports frequently exceed statutory requirements; Tables 3a-3c map reported content on test scores, demographics (grade level, gender, race/ethnicity, disability type, location), and spending.

"Frequently, these annual reports published data that surpassed what was required by their state statutes."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Most ESA programs have flexible assessment requirements, and testing results are largely informational with only West Virginia imposing explicit performance benchmarks — related
• All ESA statutes list allowable uses of funds, but only 3 of 15 detail prohibited uses, and nearly all call for audits — related
• ESA programs have grown rapidly, serving over 326,400 students across 13 states as of the 2023/24 school year — related
• The state's lack of publicly available ESA data hinders cost estimation; the report recommends publishing enrollment, expenditure, and transfer data — related